pseudo

VI

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The car ride would have been tense if it wasn't for a energetic five year old with a new friend.

Lily chatters away to Andy as she sits between us in the back of the silver Honda. Her laughter and oblivion keeps the air light.

Carson tries to keep Libby distracted with small talk, but she's constantly trying to make eye contact with me through her rear view mirror. I ignore it by watching Lily and Andy interact.

Andy face lights up just talking to Lily. Never minding what the topic is, you can tell he's completely focused on what she has to say. And his eyes crinkle whenever he laughs at whatever silly joke she makes.

But the best part is when he catches me staring at him and he flashes a genuinely happy smile at me.

Caught off guard, I give him a look of confusion. But his attention is diverted by Lily before he says anything to me.

Thankfully, we pull into my driveway a few minutes later.

As we're making our way up the driveway, Libby grabs me aside. And the questions came out hushed, but rushed at the same time.

"Who is he? When did you meet him? How long have you been 'friends' with this guy?"

"Andy. I told you at the birthday party I took Lily to the other day. And he's a good person, Libby," I answer.

She opens her mouth to start an argument. I already know because she also raises her hand with her index finger pointing up, getting ready to wag it in my face.

I cut her off before she even begins.

"You guys never give me a break, Libby. I wanted something new. Something different. It feels like I've been in prison these past two months because you and my dad and Carson have been watching me constantly like I'm Lily's age. So please don't argue with me. He's nice," I say.

She sighs and drops her hand in defeat.

Swinging an arm around my shoulder, she says, "It's all out of love, babe."

We share a smile. It's a small gesture, but we know what's behind each other's smile.

With her arm still around me, she walks us to my front door where the other three were waiting. I smile when I see that Lily is holding both of the guys' hands and is chattering away about a dream.

"We're here," Libby sings.

The three heads turn and Andy flashes a smile. For the strangest reason, my heart skips a beat.

However, Carson snaps me out of this state with his sassy tone.

"Yo. Person who lives here, unlock the door."

Embarrassed by the feeling that overcame me, I walk past them with my head down to completely avoid eye contact. With flushed, pink cheeks, I say, "Right. Right."

Lily rushes through the door and shouts, "Daddy, I'm home! I'm home!"

"Welcome to my home, Andy," I chuckle.

He lets out a chuckle himself. "Thanks so much for inviting me, Emery. Even though I nearly knocked you out."

I wave off his remark.

"Not entirely your fault," I say.

"But let's at least put some ice on it," Libby says as she enters the house.

"Also, I'm hungry," Carson follows.

"After you," I gesture for Andy to enter.

"By the way," he says entering my house, "I didn't realize that we met at a kid's birthday party."

"Shush. If you're willing to lie about being my boyfriend, you could go along with this lie," I say quietly.

"Honestly, it's just a stepping stone for you to accepting my offer."

I let out a groan. "Please. The chances of me accepting that offer is quite low."

He shrugs as we enter kitchen as if to say, "We'll see."

There's chatter in the kitchen already. Carson and Dad are talking away about Dad's job as a lawyer. Lily entertains Libby with her stories about her latest imaginary adventures. But I know this casual atmosphere would diminish the moment I introduce my dad to Andy.

Libby sees me and tosses me a bag of ice for my head. This action causes the attention to be directed to me and Andy.

As I apply the bag to my forehead, I say, "Hey, Dad. This is Andy. I met him at that party I took Lily to. Andy, this is my dad, Eric Garrison."

"Nice to meet you, sir," Andy puts out his hand to shake.

With Dad's lack of words, I feel a little awkward. He just shakes Andy's hand with a nod. A second passes, and I'm just feeling worse for inviting Andy over.

"Are you staying for dinner, Andy?" Dad asks suddenly.

I'm taken aback by this offer. The fact that everyone, especially my dad, has been on guard. And considering the events from the summer, the last person I expected my dad to invite over for dinner would be a male stranger.

"Um yeah. Sure," Andy stutters a little. "I mean, as long as it's fine with you guys. I wouldn't mind staying for dinner, sir."

"I don't ever mind. If Emery is okay with it." Dad looks over at me; waiting for a response.

"Uh if I could actually talk to you in the other room right quick, Dad. I wanted to ask you something that's important," I lie.

"We'll be right back, kids," Dad says to everyone in the kitchen.

I put down my ice pack as we head into the living room.

As soon as we make our way to the other room, I make sure they can't hear me by whispering harshly, "Dad, why are you inviting Andy over to dinner? You don't know him. I figured you would have freaked out when I even came in with him."

"Well, I probably would have said something about him, but Libby came in and told me that you felt trapped. So if you want to be friends with this guy, I wanna make sure he's alright before you anything else happens," he explains.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I had just assumed he would have an ulterior motive like interrogating him or scaring him off like the lawyer he is. But Dad surprised me this time.

"Thanks, Dad. I appreciate that you're willing to trust me again."

He smiles. "I never not trusted you."

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